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Le fabricant termine l'automate de bois.

Le fabricant termine l'automate de bois.
The maker finishes the wooden automaton.
From Lesson 377:Prepositions of characteristic and material (à, de)·French

Questions & Answers about Le fabricant termine l'automate de bois.

Why do we use de bois here instead of au bois?
The preposition de (as well as en) is used to indicate the material something is made out of. The preposition à (and its contracted forms like au or aux) is used for a defining physical characteristic, flavor, or purpose (like la fille aux yeux bleus or une boîte à outils). Since the automaton is literally constructed out of wood, de is required.
Can I say l'automate en bois?
Yes! In fact, using en for materials (en bois, en or, en plastique) is much more common in modern spoken French. Using de for materials is perfectly correct but often sounds slightly more literary or classic, which fits nicely with an old-world concept like an automate.
What is the difference between termine and finit in this context?
They are essentially interchangeable here. Terminer is slightly more formal and emphasizes bringing a process to its ultimate conclusion or putting on the finishing touches. Finir is the standard, all-purpose verb for finishing an action.
Why is fabricant spelled with a c instead of qu?
This is a classic French spelling trap! Even though the verb for 'to manufacture' is fabriquer (with a qu to keep the hard 'k' sound before the 'e'), the nouns fabricant (the maker) and fabrication (the manufacturing) are spelled with a c.

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